Chapter 44 – The Devil (Part 1)

 

But do I really need a partner?

That was the first thing that came to mind when Ainar said she was leaving the team. After all, I'm not who I was 2 months ago.

Now I can probably hunt a group of Death Fiends alone.

I had the essence of a Corpse Golem and a Vampire, and a Guardian at that. My overall stats, including strength, have increased significantly. Given my regeneration skills, I had almost no competitors on the 2nd floor.

Of course, this will not be impossible.

But there would be no night watch, no teammates to turn to in case of anything. However, I made an objective decision. Even taking all this into account, at my current level, I could play alone quite consistently.

Best Game Consoles

 

Well, the 3rd floor is still a stretch.

Dungeon & Stone almost by default forced you to play in a team. No matter how strong the character was, it was impossible to play alone given the structure of the game. So subtly the group dynamics were divided.

The higher you climbed, the more fatal the absence of a certain role became.

For example, the scout position was extremely important in the Goblin Forest. For a barbarian occupying the tank position, it was an invincible wall.

Starting from the 3rd floor, the scale of monsters also changes.

After much deliberation, I decided to find a new teammate of a similar level. If it doesn't work out, I'll join such a team and hunt monsters on a higher floor together and strive for the top.

This is more efficient than wasting time on the 2nd floor playing alone.

Of course, this will always be a headache, as I will have to make sure that they are reliable in terms of combat power and group formation.

Ha... Where can I find such people?

It looks like this month is going to be another busy one. Apart from Einar and Ervena, I had no one I knew in this world.

"Phew...

After taking a sip of the rest of the beer, I was about to go up to my room when a group of researchers, who had been pouring alcohol at the next table for some time, spoke to me.

"Hey, Mr. Barbarian!" What do you think?

"What do you mean?"

"Oh, you haven't heard?" This little friend said something cute.

Hmm, I didn't think they were looking for a fight. When I made a gesture that I would listen to them, a 25-year-old researcher explained the situation in detail.

In short, it was like this. Somehow, the theme of the liberated barbarian came up. Naturally, researchers began to speak ill of the Guild. But then a young researcher came and praised the Guild, asking if the group believed in such nonsense. The researchers who listened at the time outwardly laughed and made fun of him when they saw me passing by and stopped me.

"That's why we want to hear your opinion. How about this? Do you also think that the bastards from the Guild are trustworthy?

"Damn, are you kidding?" I'd rather trust a pile of shit on the road than the Guild.

"Hahahaha!" Yes! I knew you'd say something like that! Just by looking at your eyes, I can tell that you are different from this rabble! The guy seemed to like it, and he continued to laugh.

The young guy who was sitting in the corner suddenly stood up with a red face.

"Wait!" How can you call yourself researchers? Who would protect us if it weren't for the Guild? You should be grateful!

There was a short silence. Soon, everyone sitting at the table burst into laughter.

"What?" Be grateful? Hahahaha!

"Boy!" That's why you're treated like a child wherever you go!

Apparently, there was a culture of distrust among researchers in order to be recognized as a full-fledged adult.

"That's enough, that's it. He will understand this when he experiences it for himself. That no one but yourself can protect you.

"Wow, what touching words.

"On that note, let's have a drink!"

After it was over, the researchers continued to drink. I was about to leave again when the man who had stopped me earlier came up to me with a friendly face.

"I'm Hans."

"Hans...?"

"Haha!" It's a common name, isn't it?

I couldn't be sure, but it seemed to be common. The name of the first person I killed in the labyrinth was also Hans.

"Bjorn, son of Yandel."

"I see!" Since that's the way it is, if you're not tired, why don't you have another drink with us? I'll pay!

I considered his proposal and nodded. Although I've eavesdropped on other researchers talking here and there, I haven't had many direct conversations with them.

"So, what kind of problems did you have that you drank alone?"

I thought I might get advice I didn't expect, so I honestly shared my concerns.

"My team has disbanded, so I am looking for new comrades. But I don't know where to start.

Hans, who had been listening seriously, bowed his head.

"Why don't you go to the Guild with a problem like this?"

"A guild?"

"Haha!" It is true that they are untrustworthy bastards, but shouldn't we use everything that is available? In any case, they work with our tax money!

Hmm, it was true. Regardless of the circumstances, a researcher could not be separated from the Guild. Even in the game, it was easy to find new companions through the Guild. But...

"I'm worried about whether I'll be able to trust the people I meet through them.

"Hahaha!" It looks like you haven't used it properly yet. It has changed a lot compared to the past. Since there are many cases of treacherous team members, it is now mandatory to carry a dashcam.

Really? There was no such thing in the game.

"Believe me and see for yourself. The worst usually does not happen.

Hearing this, the idea seemed good.

***

The next morning, waking up with a slight hangover, I headed straight for the magic tower.

"You can't enter without a pass.

Shouldn't you first ask if I have one?

I was annoyed that I had to face racial discrimination early in the morning, but when I showed the pass Raven had given me, the staff let me inside without further ado.

*Zing!*

I arrived on the 31st floor. As soon as I entered Raven's personal lab, I was greeted by a livelier interior than 2 days ago.

"Oh, are you here?"

It seemed that many of the books and documents that had been cluttered had been removed, but instead, the room was filled with terrifying-looking devices.

— ... Where are you going to use it?

Among them, I pointed to the most terrible-looking object and asked.

"Nothing special, it's a magical tool that makes it easier to draw blood.

Her answer surprised me twice. One because it was not designed to crush human skulls, and the second because this wild device was a magical tool.

"Then are you ready?"

— ... I don't think so.

"Don't be afraid. Come here.

— ... Ok.

At first, I was half suspicious and half worried, but surprisingly, all the tests using magic tools were quite humane. In addition, the process was so fast that it didn't take long to finish. But judging by the results alone, they were no different from the information I had gathered myself while in prison.

"First of all, there is no big difference between a Guardian Essence and an ordinary one. Oh, you know what I'm talking about, don't you?

"I see.

The essences dropped by the Guardians had two features. Firstly, their main indicators were 1.5 times higher than those of ordinary essence.

"Since you already know, it's best if you see it for yourself."

She summed up the statistics of the Vampire Essence that she had evaluated with the help of various magic tools. In fact, it didn't mean much. As expected, there were no numbers written on the paper, but simply an indicator: "high", "medium", "low" and so on. I've already been able to calculate the exact number of stats by multiplying 1.5 by the stats of an ordinary Vampire.

[Vampire].

Natural Regeneration +45, Strength +15, Agility +15, Magic Resistance +30, Physical Resistance +12, Soul Force +21, Mana Sensitivity +30, Dark Resistance +12, Sun Resistance -12

Some people might think that these numbers are low for a rank 5 monster.

It definitely wasn't. The essence of the Corpse Golem, which was only rank 7, had a high Pain Resistance of +70 and Bone Strength of +55. Even this number was multiplied by 1.5.

But Natural Regeneration, Magic Resistance, Physical Resistance, Soul Power, and even Mana Sensitivity...

The rarity of the stats themselves was on another level. Even in the game, these valuable stats were usually measured in low values because too many of them could create a monster.

"I understand it again, but you're very lucky, Mr. Yandel. Even the essence of an ordinary Vampire is very rare, and you have the essence of the Guardian.

In fact, the word "lucky" wasn't enough to describe it. Even if one considered a Guardian Essence of rank 5 or higher as a graduation essence, it wasn't an exaggeration. In many ways, it was definitely not something to be found in the beginning.

"If you're done looking at this, look at this too. I've gathered all the special abilities just in case. There are four of them in total.

Suddenly, the corners of my lips went up.

"Four, huh?"

The second feature of the Guardian Essence was as follows. Ordinary essences only had two skills, passive and active, but the Guardian essence was different.

(P) The source of Darkness is resistance to death while the heart is intact.

(A) Sacrificial Imprint - Temporarily increases your physical abilities based on the number of creatures stained with your blood.

(A) Eternal Life - Temporarily increases your regeneration in proportion to the decrease in health.

(A) Master of Blood - When directly draining blood, temporarily absorbs one of the target's skills.

Along with the main passive skill, it came with all the available active skills. Normally, in order to obtain the [Sacrificial Imprint], one had to absorb the yellow essence of the vampire and the red essence for the [Blood Master]. However, for the Guardian Essence, this was not the case. On the contrary, the difficulty of acquisition was just as high.

Now that I have that and the Imprint of Immortality, can we say that the regeneration setup is finished?

My growth was so fast that even I, a person who has been playing this game for 9 years, could not believe it.

While I was inwardly satisfied, I heard Raven talking to herself.

"Okay, that's all for today. You did a good job. Come next week at any time convenient for you. I'll be here anyway.

"But is there anything else to investigate?"

"What are you talking about?" In order for this to be accepted as official data of the academic community, we need to conduct reciprocal studies at least 10 more times.

— ... Got it. I just confirmed it because I didn't know. Don't be so angry.

"I'm not angry. Anyway, I'm going to test the essence of the Corpse Golem when I have time, so don't even think about running away in the middle.

— ... I was almost naked after the inspection, so I put on my clothes. While I was here, I asked, "Raven, do you have any plans to enter the maze in the future?"

"I'm not sure. Perhaps not in the near future... And what?

"Ahem!" Wouldn't it be better to be with someone you know?

Could she see how awkward I felt?

She laughed as if it was silly.

"I'm sorry, but we're not that close, don't you think?"

"It doesn't matter. Pretend you didn't hear me.

"I don't want to," Her voice suddenly became quarrelsome. Looking back, we can say that her character has always been like this. She was usually quiet, but on those occasions when her feelings were hurt, she became infinitely rude. "How could you ask me to join a team of two barbarians?" What do you think of me?

More precisely, there were not even two of them, one resigned yesterday. Although, if I say that, the atmosphere is likely to become more violent.

— ... That's why I said, pretend you didn't hear it!

"How can I pretend I didn't hear what I heard?"

Was it worth being so upset about this?

I wondered how I should react to her sudden upset as she let out a long sigh as if she were doing a breathing exercise.

"Ha... Mr. Yandel. If you want to make such an offer to the magician, then at least give the appropriate command. Well... It would be nice if all the team members were rank 6 or higher, and if there was a priest there.

Damn, do you think I don't know that?

If I had been in a better situation, I wouldn't have proposed to her.

"I--I'll do that.

I swear, the mages and their tall horses...

"Then I'll go."

"Oh!" Please wait! Raven caught Bjorn, who was about to leave. She remembered what she had forgotten to ask: "Then! What was it then? You put something in the Vampire's mouth when he was unconscious. It seemed to me that I felt divine power...

This question arose when she was writing down the events of the past in order to relay them to her master.

What was that?

No matter how much she thought about it, it wasn't something that a rank 9 researcher could carry with her.

"Hm?" I don't know what you're talking about.

"Sorry?"

"Maybe you mixed something up, because everything was so hectic.

"Did you mix it up?" It's impossible. I could feel it clearly-...

"I'm going." I need to go somewhere.

"Excuse me!" Please wait! Sec-...

*Clap!*

Bjorn closed the door and walked away before she could say anything else.

Yes, then you are hiding something.

Looking at the place where he stood, she pouted and headed to the office. She then took out a thick book, "The Complete Book of Rift III." It was a record book that collected all the information about the Chasms. Like the simple title, it was an old book that didn't even have the author's name written on it. She bought it by accident on the free market as a child, and surprisingly, it contained information that wasn't even recorded in academia.

"What page was the Blood Citadel on...?"

As she turned the pages, her hand stopped in one place. Map of the underground prison. The exact location of the hidden passage.

A page with more information about the Blood Citadel, such as how to obtain the Necronomicon in the Hall of Demon Worship. Unfortunately, there were parts that could not be read:

[Tear of the Goddess].

Where to get them: ________________...

[Golden Mask]

Two items that have disappeared due to weathering over the years, and the ways to obtain them have been erased. Raven looked for them everywhere, but in the end she did not find them. She sniffed her lips in disappointment and tilted her head again.

Wait, I think I've heard of the Tears of the Goddess somewhere...

Where did I hear that?

Remembering her vague memories, she took out several religious books and quickly turned the pages one by one. How much time has passed? Finally, her hand stopped.

[Tears of the Goddess.

Consumable relics of unknown origin.

When destroyed, it has the effect of spreading powerful Grace in a specific place. During the Dimensional Collapse 150 years ago, Cardinal Androne used all three relics to save the Pope, and they have since disappeared from public view.

"A holy relic?"

Surprised, she even checked the picture drawn on the next page. It was too early to say for sure because of how far away it was, but it seemed that they were about the same shape and size. Even the method of application and the effects were the same.

Raven was puzzled. It cannot be a mere coincidence. But if that wasn't the case, then how could a barbarian who had just become an adult know where the Tear of the Goddess was hidden, and even think about using them?

Could it be that Mr. Yandel...

A possibility flashed through her mind, and her eyes lit up as she picked up the book.

I have to check it out.

As long as it takes, it's worth it.